We adored Secrets Marquis! We were there from December 3 through 11, 2012, and had perfect weather. There aren't enough words to describe how fantastic it was, except to say that we felt we were in paradise the entire time we were there. The food was excellent, the liquor readily available, and the staff were all perfection. We started with an ocean-view suite on the 5th floor which was a lovely room with a massive ocean view, but after 3 days we decided to splurge and paid $100.00 extra per night for a honeymoon suite. We lost the massive view, but doubled our space, which for us was well worth it. We still had a view, but it was from the 2nd floor, but we gained a patio, a dip pool, a living room, kitchen area and a large, more private bathroom, and much more privacy in general.

We loved the food, and always had fantastic service no matter where we ate. Vista Ballenas and The Grill were our favorites, in large part because we loved the steaks in both places. There were plenty of food choices at all the restaurants. We had almost constant attention from the waiters when we were by the pool. They would bring you food and drink, and didn't wait for you to signal them for assistance, they just magically appeared. Their staff to guest ratio was very high. We never waited for service anywhere.

We rented a car the entire time we were there, and always used the fast and professional valet service at the hotel. We were able to drive to Todos Santos, San Jose del Cabo and of course Cabo San Lucas. Driving in Cabo isn't bad at all, and we didn't have any problems. Parking at the Cabo San Lucas mall is 15 pesos per day so we parked there and walked the marina and the entire shopping area during our visits to town.

We also took a glass bottomed boat tour to Los Arcos, which we highly recommend. No reservations are required. Just go to the marina and negotiate a trip with one of the many boat operators who are outside along the pier.

Secrets Marquis is a no tipping required facility, but we tipped anyway. We were embarrassed by a couple of demanding guests who barely said thank you after someone went out of their way for them. The staff were very grateful when you acknowledged them by giving them a little cash. Cabo is a tourist town so we were able to use our US Dollars everywhere we went.

All in all, we highly recommend Secrets Marquis. We arrived on a Monday and as were are in our 60s, we were the oldest guests at the hotel for the first five days, but we never felt out of place, and had a lovely vacation.

Arriving at Secrets in Cabo is a jaw-dropping experience -- the panoramic ocean views are matched by the elegance of the reception area and the friendliness of the service. After a bit of a hard-sell to look at real estate, you get to go to your room and ALL rooms in this resort offer outstanding views -- not only do you get to look at the horizon of water, but you can hear the water lapping away at the shore as well.

The pool-side service is fantastic -- you should look for Adalberto's section as he is a sincere and generous person whose service is exceptional. In a resort where getting any fresh fruit in a drink (everything is from syrups) seemed impossible, Adalberto managed to find some fresh strawberries from the kitchen for a delicious and not-too-sweet daquiri. You wouldn't think fresh fruit would be impossible to find in Mexico, but at Secrets, you can only find it at the breakfast buffet.

That brings me to the only major problem with this resort: the quality of the food. The food over-promises with impeccable presentation, but is completely underwhelming as far as taste, quality, and consistency goes. In fact, both my wife and I got sick eating at the resort and we normally have pretty strong constitutions. On at least two occasions, we were served seafood that was off. Once, we ordered tuna carpaccio at the "Italian" restaurant and it tasted rotten and smelled fishy. The second time was with the salmon at Spice -- it was also fishy and tasted spoiled. Also, if you want to know what the restaurants in the resort served for dinner the night before you just had to visit the breakfast buffet. I think part of the problem when we were there was the fact that the resort was about 1/4 full, so maybe they had to recycle a lot of things. Too bad they took a risk with our health to save on costs.

Other than the food, the resort exceeded most expectations. The rooms are clean and well-appointed, the service is generally very good, the views are excellent -- the resort has the potential to be a world-class all-inclusive escape if they manage to work on their food quality.

This adults-only all-inclusive resort nestled into the sugary sands of the Cabo Riviera is ideally situated mere miles from both quiet, traditional San Jose del Cabo to the North and the legendary nightlife of Cabo San Lucas to the South. A short cab ride--available on demand at the resort-- will bring you to whatever type of entertainment most interests you. San Jose del Cabo boasts an amazing dolphin facility, and is more the equivalent of a quiet, artsy district. Cabo San Lucas, on the other hand, is where you-- and the celebrities-- go when you want to hit the town. The hills above the marina are host to homes owned by Tom Cruise, Leonardo DiCaprio, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and too many more to list. (Sammy Hagar and Oprah own homes in the Riviera-- a wise choice.) I call the photo of the sea, "Beautiful & Cruel" in reference to Sandra Cisneros's vignette: the sea is beautiful to look at, but downright dangerous (at least in this area) to challenge. Undercurrents in this geologically and biologically diverse area make swimming something better done in one of the resort's many pools-- pools, I might add, supplied with water by the resort's own, environmentally friendly, desalination plant.

A note on water. The water here is as safe and clean as it can be given its method of purification. Bottled water is generously supplied for drinking and brushing-- and it's wise to use it instead of tap water. Bottom line: every water source contains some germs. You don't get sick at home primarily because your body is used to the bugs at home. Go anywhere else where the variety is likely to be very different and you can reasonably assume you will get sick. I'm happy to report that we were not sickened by water or food at any time while we traveled.

The service was beyond compare; our every want and need was met with a smile and, "it's a pleasure." Thoroughly fluent in English, the entire staff was helpful, pleasant, and eager to have a good time. On-premise currency exchange made all of our transactions simple and with no additional fee, easier and less expensive than conventional exchanges. Booking an upgrade was easy: while it is true that every suite in the place has ocean-front views and a whirlpool bath, the upgrade, in our case, was worth every penny. It was, after all, our honeymoon-- and for an enormous, luxuriously appointed casita with roof-top pool how can you go wrong? Concierge went out of their way to help us book every excursion we desired and made meeting our highest hopes a personal concern. They helped us decipher among the many pamphlets and were able to tell us which tours included which features, which were most preferred by guests, and which packages were the best to consider: their recommendations were spot on every time. Not a dime of our money was wasted.

Each morning, we awoke to a variety of traditional breads, fruit, and coffee in the Secrets box; thereafter we could order room service (free of charge) for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or late night meals when we decided we were too relaxed to bother dressing up for a night out. Someone one here actually had the nerve to call the breads stale-- to are SO NOT STALE. They are breads baked using traditional recipes that do not have the same texture as those you would get at home! Housekeeping visited our suite twice daily, once in the morning for tidying and again in the evening for turn-down service and cleaning; the mini-bar was restocked daily (with water, juice, and top-grade anejo tequilla, I might add) though we rarely ever needed it since free drinks were everywhere to be had. Every restaurant on the resort's property offered expertly executed culinary creations, but there were plenty of low-key options as well to satisfy those, "I don't want to get all-dressed up," cravings. Elevating food to fine art, Canto del Mar, Spice, and Dos Mares offered evening extravagance. Pevonia, the resort's spa, offered an extensive array of services and products all of which are the finest in quality and class: the only downside is the price. More than double what it would cost us in the states, price kept us from indulging more often in spa services-- Secrets would be wise to charge less for spa services and entice more repeat business.

We spent most of our days and nights out on the town for excursions, but on the few nights when we were around to see the activities, we were thoroughly impressed. Parties are no small affair on this property- resort staff literally transform the entire main concourse in a matter of hours. Fireworks, fiestas, dancing, movies, pub crawls-- if you can imagine it, they already have.

I couldn't have asked for more from a honeymoon-- I couldn't have dreamed of more if I tried. Just in case you couldn't tell, I am one happy bride. =)

Nearby Attractions:
**Cabo Rey Sunset Dinner Cruise** Begins with live entertainment and rooftop drinks aboard a quadruple-decker party boat. Cruise out to Land's End where the famous arch marks the meeting of the Sea of Cortez and the Pacific Ocean. Fabulous dinner expertly executed and live entertainment bring traditional song and dance alive.
**Esperanza Tours: Snorkeling at Lover's Beach** was an absolutely amazing tour and it included a short glass-bottom boat tour of local landmarks, boxed lunch, transportation to and from the hotel, and underwater photography along with new equipment. Got to see amazing underwater life in the most biologically diverse sea in the world. Shopping time in Cabo San Lucas was also included with this tour.
**Esperanza Tours: San Jose del Cabo City Tour** included a tour of the cactus garden-- designed to represent the many native cultures of people and plants in the area, a tour of the local glass-blowing factory (which included a live demonstration of some amazing skill), a tour of one of the area's oldest churches, and some shopping time. Our guide for both tours was the same person, and he was fantastic-- he gave us the historical overview from ancient to modern times.
**Dolphin Adventure: Cabo San Lucas** Expensive but worth EVERY DIME. We interacted with dolphins in their natural habitat for well over an hour. The trainer was very good at providing detailed, explicit, instruction and helping to facilitate communication between the dolphins and the humans. The animals were eager to please and wanted the mental stimulation of complex interaction; they clearly were well-cared for, active, healthy, and happy creatures. To the facility's credit, the first baby dolphin born in a natural, captive habitat was recently born to the one of the largest females on record at Cabo San Lucas Dolphin Adventures. This was the ultimate experience of a lifetime.
**Cabo Wabo: Sammy Hagar's Cantina** Good food, good music, several atmospheres to please all crowds-- a good place to, "check-in." Next time we'll have to try a few of the other restaurants suggested by locals.

My husband and I booked our one year anniversary trip to Secret Marquis with our good friends who were also celebrating their anniversary! We wanted to be able to relax as well as go out and take in all that Cabo has to offer. When we arrived at Secrets Marquis, we instantly fell in love with the open air lobby and amazing view of the resort and ocean. We were greeted immediately and brought to our BEAUTIFULLLL, huge suite (which they so nicely decorated with both a "Happy Anniversary" banner on the door as well rose petals, candles, and champagne inside).

Everything about our junior suite was just perfect. The cleanliness, the view, the space, the STOCKED mini fridge, and cute little breakfast cabinet (where they serve you coffee and muffins every morning). My husband who is not the best sleeper slept like a baby every night in the HUGE bed. We ordered room service (available at ALL times and included) quite often and were always treated extremely courteously. We never had to wait more than a half hour for our food which was DELICIOUS (especially for an all inclusive resort)! Also, the shower was most definitely THE BEST we have ever experienced on vacation. AMAZING water pressure and so luxurious.

We were treated SO WELL by every single employee, but there were a few that made our trip as fun as it was! Alex was our go-to bartender. He made it a point to remember our names & drink choices and always served us with a smile! He made us feel like we were "regulars" at a neighborhood bar.

The resort provided great daily activities which were led by two very entertaining coordinators, Cartier & Fernando. One of the activities was an awesome pub crawl which took us to some of the most popular bars in town. They both brought amazing energy to our night and we felt like we were hanging out with friends from home!

This resort is the best of both worlds. Adults only which kept things quiet and low key during the day, but so close to town that a crazy, fun-filled night is just a short ride away! We ALL cannot wait to go back! :)